Lotz Road’s paving between Ford and Cherry Hill roads, initially expected to begin as early as June, has been delayed.

Wayne County still hadn’t sought bids for the project late last week, Canton Municipal Services Director Tim Faas said.

“We’re waiting on the county to get the project bid,” he said, a delay that raises questions about when the work might begin.

“Personally, I think they would be hard-pressed to hit August,” Faas added.

That means a bigger chunk of the $4-million project is likely to spill over to next year.

A move to pave the section of Lotz is viewed as one of the ways to ease traffic congestion along Ford Road by providing another north-south artery.

The first stage of the Lotz project is expected to include installing a culvert in a drain behind the Home Depot store — prior to adding a water main along Lotz and paving the road.

Local officials say it’s questionable now how much of the paving work can be accomplished this year along the pothole-riddled, dirt section of Lotz.

David Agacinski, now-retired county roads division design engineer, had earlier said the county hoped to finish the paving this year.

“We don’t want that to carry over to next year,” he had said.

However, Canton officials say that is unlikely due to delays in seeking bids for the project.

Whenever it does start, Agacinski said, the project will force some temporary road closures to through traffic.

Lotz will be paved with three lanes, including a middle turn lane, a move that could potentially lead to a new spurt of development along the road. However, a developer’s plans to build a large outlet mall on the southwest corner of Ford and Lotz were called off last year.

The work comes as the Michigan Department of Transportation has started a separate summer construction project to improve Ford Road in the Haggerty and I-275 area by lengthening turn lanes and improving ramps, among other measures.

It’s all intended to help ease traffic congestion until a long-term project occurs to convert crash-prone Ford Road into a boulevard from the I-275 area toward Canton Center. MDOT has said the bigger project hinges on funding.